Some students waiting to get into the College of Nursing and Health Sciences at UW-Eau Claire may not have to wait as long next year.
This is because the university is pairing with Chippewa Valley Technical College to form a pilot program allowing Eau Claire nursing applicants to receive an associate degree from CVTC while taking general education classes at the university. Students can then go on to receive their bachelor’s degree from Eau Claire or another university.
| “It’s really hard to work your butt off and not have any idea if you’re going to get (in).” –Andrea Kramer Senior |
Elaine Wendt, dean of the College of Nursing and Health Sciences, said the new Chippewa Valley Nursing Alliance program has been in the works for a while.
“My concern has been for the number of students that we have that can’t be admitted to our program because of lack of space,” Wendt said.
She said that about 180 applicants are turned away each year due to lack of space in the program. The Chippewa Valley Nursing Alliance will provide slots for 24 Eau Claire students and eight CVTC students.
Students participating in the program, which will begin in the spring semester, will be able to live in Eau Claire residence halls, have a university adviser and take GE classes at the university concurrently with their CVTC nursing studies.
Senior Andrea Kramer applied to the university’s nursing program multiple times, but was denied due to demand for the program. While she is now happy as a healthcare administration major, she said she would’ve liked to participate in the pilot program last year.
“It’s really frustrating,” she said. “I had everything done for pre-nursing, all my pre-requisites and (GE classes). It’s really hard to work your butt off and not have any idea if you’re going to get into the program.”
CVTC is able to increase enrollment in its nursing associate’s degree program after a $12 million expansion of its Health Education Center on Clairemont Avenue, according to its Web site.
Wendt said students who have previously applied to the School of Nursing at Eau Claire will get priority for the 24 open slots. The program will not affect people on the waiting list for the associate’s program at CVTC, as the alliance is mutually beneficial, she added.
“We’re using the areas where there is capacity at both of the colleges,” Wendt said. “They’ve got the capacity in their associate degree program.”
